The Confident Chemistry Teacher

Episode 11- Inside the Lab: Matter and Change Station Lab

Listen Later

Ep. 11 – Inside the Lab: Matter & Change 

In this episode of The Confident Chemistry Teacher Podcast, I’m kicking off a new series: Inside the Lab. Today, I’m taking you inside my Matter & Change Lab—an 8-station activity that gives students confidence, reinforces key vocabulary, and sets safety expectations early in the year.

I’ll highlight my 4 favorite stations and share teacher hacks that make setup, timing, and safety a whole lot smoother.

Key Takeaways

  • By the end of this episode, you’ll learn how to:
  • Reinforce Chemistry vocabulary with hands-on practice
  • Use station labs to build early lab confidence and safety habits
  • Incorporate skills like stopwatch use, Bunsen burner setup, and conductivity testing
  • Adapt a multi-station lab for large classes and 2-day pacing

    •  

    Activities / Stations Featured

    • Alka-Seltzer Reaction – Stopwatch skills + surface area observations
    • Calcium Chloride + Baking Soda + Indicator – Evidence of reaction: gas, color, and temperature change
    • Burning Magnesium – Bunsen burner practice + safety with bright light
    • Conductivity Test (Salt vs. Sugar) – Ionic vs. molecular properties in action
    • Other stations include evaporating salt water, filtering, magnet separation, and balance practice

      •  

      Standards Connections

      • HS-PS1-3: Plan and conduct investigations to gather evidence of physical and chemical properties
      • Science & Engineering Practices: Making observations, analyzing data, using lab tools
      • Crosscutting Concepts: Cause & effect; patterns

        •  

        🎁 Free Resource Grab the Lab Day Starter Kit – includes a checklist, lab station joke cards, a sign-up sheet, and editable Google Slides to make your labs run smoother from start to finish.

        👉 https://learn.chemschemistryclassroom.com/lab-day-starter-kit

         

        🧪 Paid Resource

        The Confident Chem Lab Membership launches this October! Each month includes a ready-to-run lab with student handouts, teacher guides, quizzes, and setup videos—plus PD and Q&A support.

        Keep an ear out for more details!

         

        Next Episode Teaser

        Next time, I’ll be sharing how I used the Lab Day Starter Kit to help make what seems like a simple and boring lab into a meaningful learning experience for my students and how it helped me prepare and organize for a great lab day.

        ...more
        View all episodesView all episodes
        Download on the App Store
        The Confident Chemistry TeacherBy Chem Simoneau